


Let Me Be Free

by kipsi



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Death Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-16
Updated: 2014-02-16
Packaged: 2018-01-12 16:36:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1192194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kipsi/pseuds/kipsi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It was a relief, really, to finally let go.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Let Me Be Free

**Author's Note:**

> There was a post sometime ago on Tumblr that ppl wanted to know how Hannibal would react if he got to know that Will was dead, and no one seemed to do it so I had to write it...  
> 

Will knew what kind of a criminal the man was when he ran into him and the food went flying down to the floor. He expected a fight. It would have been ideal to him; to let some of that anger finally out that gnawed inside him. That wasn't what he got though.

He wasn't quick enough, and it took him a long moment to realize what exactly happened. When he felt the warm gush of blood soaking his overalls, he let out a strangled laugh.

The other prisoner fled instantly, seeing Will bleeding, and Will was left alone to the small corner of the canteen. He slid down to the floor, the sharpened pocket knife still in its place, keeping him warm at least for a while.

Will was aware of the fact that if the guards took too long, he wouldn't survive. It was the most possible outcome, yet he didn't feel bitter. He was tired of being accused of the things that he hadn't done, how everyone's opinions on him had changed. How the way everyone _looked at him_ was so different.

And then there was Dr. Lecter, who had shown him his true face for the first time, his eyes full of glee as he watched him being behind the bars, later on promising to _help_ him.

Will tasted the copper of blood in his mouth and felt a trickle of it escape down to his chin. He laughed brokenly and screwed his eyes shut against the pain that throbbed inside him. He took in a sharp breath and it hurt, making him let out a faint sob.

He opened his eyes and let his gaze drop to his stomach. Blood was everywhere; red, glistening, fresh blood, staining his clothes with every breath he took. He was going to die, and he let out another bubble of laughter.

Maybe he was finally losing it, just like Dr. Lecter would have desired. Bathing in blood. Will couldn't suppress the grin that looked more like a grimace.

It was hard to keep his eyes open any longer, there were black spots everywhere and Will felt like sleeping for the first time in months. He didn't really care anymore, now that the death was so close to him. It would be so easy to just let go and not to think. He wondered if he had unconsciously known that the man would kill him.

He could have died in a far better place than this though, and the only thing that made him feel a bit better was that Chilton would probably get in trouble because of this. He knew he would.

The warmth of the blood started to fade and left a feel of cold in its place. Will shivered and heard distantly how his teeth chattered. The pain was immense, the wound deep and aching, but the feel of it started to fade away as well. His eyelids grew heavy and Will knew that his time had finally come.

_He would be free._

 

 

**

 

 

It was his usual visiting time when Hannibal arrived to the Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane. However, it wasn't usual for the guards to act so terrified. When he took the first step into the building, he knew immediately that something was amiss. The guard's widened eyes when seeing him was another proof of it.

”I came to see Will Graham,” Hannibal said at last, the statement making the guard swallow thickly. He didn't say anything at all, just stared at him like one of the lunatics they kept behind the bars.

”Is there some kind of a problem..,” Hannibal glanced at the name tag the guard was wearing, ”Tom?”

That snapped the guard out of his trance, but he frowned slightly before taking a look at him again. Hannibal noted it and smiled inwardly. He had been right about the false names to protect the guards' identities from the criminals.

”You can't visit Mr. Graham, I'm afraid,” Tom said then, making Hannibal shift subtly. ”And why is that, Tom?” he asked, curious.

He knew that Will had no word over who could visit him; he was still in that state of mind. But he also knew that there was no way that Jack would have told them not to let him see Will.

”He's not here anymore,” Tom stated, his face paling as he finally said it. He raised his eyes to Hannibal's, who watched him closely, reading his emotions like an open book. The man was afraid. ”What do you mean, Tom?” he inquired then.

It wasn't possible for Will to get a transfer, Chilton wanted to keep Will himself, he wouldn't give anyone else the opportunity to observe him so thoroughly.

Tom shifted nervously under his piercing gaze and Hannibal heard him cursing under his breath. He didn't expect the words that he was given, but as he heard them, he felt a sudden coldness taking over him. He stood still and asked Tom to repeat himself. The guard watched him in silence for a second before saying:

”Dr. Lecter, Will Graham is dead.”

 

 

**

 

 

The first time Hannibal was allowed to see Will's body was after Jack called him, asking him to come identify the body. He had been sipping wine, listening to Bach's Air on the G string and waiting for the call. He knew that Jack would want him there. He wanted to go there himself as well, see how Will had died.

It angered him beyond words; that a wretched, petty criminal had ended Will's life. It was unforgivable.

Coming home after hearing the news and not being let in to talk with Chilton, he was already boiling inside. The first glass of wine that he had poured to himself snapped in half in his grasp, and he pressed his lips into a tight line. He was losing control.

The drive to Quantico was a long one, and so Hannibal had time to cool down while listening to the softly playing music on the radio. He got his anger under control after a while, and when he finally met Jack, he saw a broken man. First put behind the bars and now killed. He wondered if Jack blamed himself for Will's death, it would only to be expected.

They didn't exchange any words. Jack nodded to him and guided him to the morgue, where the forensic team was waiting for them silently. They were pale and speechless; there was no snide remarks or the same entertaining atmosphere as before. Hannibal saw that Katz's eyes were reddish, she had been crying.

Jack stood motionless beside him, as Hannibal took in his surroundings. There was only one body on display, still under the sheet. He knew that it was Will, as did everyone else in the room. Jack's request had been quite needless, but Hannibal knew that he couldn't still believe it, it had been a shock to every one of them.

He made his way to the autopsy table, Jack following him and giving a look to Zeller, who reluctantly walked over to the table and lifted the sheet just enough to give them a view of Will's head. He let go of the sheet then and hurried out of the room, avoiding Jack's piercing eyes. Katz and Price waited a moment before following him, but Jack was already ignoring them, his gaze in Will, who lay motionless on the table.

Hannibal looked at Will's face; the color of his usually healthy skin pale, the rosy cheeks just a distant memory of him. If it wasn't for the ghastly look on him, or the smell of death lingering in the air, he would have thought that Will was asleep.

He glanced at Jack, who stared down at Will. It was clear that he didn't need to clarify to him if it truly was Will, it was obvious from the look on the man's face. He waited for a minute before clearing his throat, Jack's eyes shifting from Will's closed ones to his.

"I'd like to have a moment, if that is alright?" Hannibal asked, Jack nodding to him before taking his leave.

When the door shut behind him, Hannibal moved closer to the table and let his eyes take in the bluish lips of Will's, his long eyelashes resting on his cheeks and his still messy and soft hair. He reached out to touch his skin, and as he cupped Will's face, it was already cold. He let out a small sigh as he caressed Will's cheek, his fingers mapping the dead man's face thoroughly, his thumb coming to rest on Will's lower lip.

He was beautiful like this as well, but it was nothing like when Will was _alive_ , using his mind to _see_ , to _become_ even more breathtaking.

Hannibal took a hold of the sheet that covered the rest of Will's body and pulled, the white sheet revealing Will's chest, already opened and stitched back together. He saw the deep wound on his stomach and pulled his lips into a tight line. It was ugly and poorly done, clearly in a hurry. Hannibal felt another rush of anger surfacing, and he gripped the edge of the table, his knuckles turning white.

Will didn't deserve any of this. This kind of a death was unforgivable. He should have been the one to kill Will, if it had to be done at all. He would have shown him the true beauty of dying, of becoming a breathtaking masterpiece. And now it all was lost.

He bend down to press his lips to Will's cold ones before covering him again with the sheet. He watched for the last time how Will's face disappeared before him, and he closed his eyes momentarily, saving the memory of Will into his most treasured room in his mind palace, for ever.


End file.
